Friday, March 11, 2011

Grandma

My grandma died last night, after a day filled with her favorite activities: shopping and going out for lunch. She got home, and her heart stopped. She was 88 (mom, correct me if she wasn't 88).

As a tribute to Grandma Snapper, I've created a flickr set of just a few of the pairs of socks I've knit for her over the past few years: Grandma Socks. No matter how busy I've been, Grandma has received a handknit pair of socks every Mother's Day and every Christmas since I was able to knit socks. Every time I saw her, she would explain that she deliberately walked around her retirement community shoeless, fishing for compliments on the socks. I'm certain that if the compliments were not forthcoming, she actively drew attention to the socks.

When I published Craft Work Knit in September, I gave Grandma a copy. Wait, no, she INSISTED on paying for a copy and put a check in the mail. Again, I'm fairly certain she used her socks to lure her friends and neighbors into her apartment to show it off.

Grandma was an elementary school teacher, in the family tradition. She had a long, fabulous life. I miss her already.

Hugs for you, Ann.I love the socks story. I always knit socks for my Mom for her birthday and this year I thought maybe I wouldn't have time but now that I've read this, I said to myself, "Of course I'm making the socks!"

I'm so glad she enjoyed her life right to the end, and that she unabashedly expressed her pride in you. (Having had a grandma who championed your creativity is a real gift, and one I treasure, myself. My maternal grandmother died this past year-- a very talented woman.) I'll be thinking about you and the rest of Team Weaver.